Stratigraphic Relations of Hesperian Transition Units in the Nepenthes Region, Mars
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46th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (2015) 1584.pdf STRATIGRAPHIC RELATIONS OF HESPERIAN TRANSITION UNITS IN THE NEPENTHES REGION, MARS. G. Caprarelli1, 1University of South Australia, Division of IT, Engineering and the Environment (DITEE), GPO Box 2471, Adelaide, SA 5001, Australia. Email: [email protected]. Introduction: The Nepenthes region of Mars, lo- collaborative investigations (e.g., [4]) aimed at con- cated along the dichotomy boundary to the east of straining the geologic and climatic history of the re- Isidis Planitia, is subdivided into two geomorphologi- gion. cal units: the southernmost, Nepenthes Mensae, has a Data and Methods: Using the open-source GIS rough appearance, being formed by fretted terrain package QGIS (http://qgis.osgeo.org/en/site/), I ex- composed of knobs, mesas, breccias, and material pro- tracted from a published database of impact craters [5] duced by wasting of the dichotomy scarp; the north- the values of diameter and depth of 663 craters located ernmost, Nepenthes Planum, is smooth and gently un- in Nepenthes Mensae and Nepenthes Planum (study dulating due to the presence of wrinkle ridges. area: white frame in Fig. 1). I then subdivided the data Distinct stratigraphic units characterize the region by the geographic extent of stratigraphic units HNt, (Fig. 1): in the most recent published global map of eHt and lHt, obtaining one subset of measured depth Mars [1] Nepenthes Mensae is mapped as unit HNt and diameter data for each unit. No additional filter (Hesperian and Noachian transition unit), while Ne- was applied to the data, which were subsequently pro- penthes Planum is mapped as unit eHt (Early Hesperi- cessed and statistically analysed using routines written an transition unit), bound to the north by unit lHt (Late in the open-source SciPy (http://www.scipy.org) soft- Hesperian transition unit). The units are described for ware. their global properties in [1-3], with unit HNt generally Interpretation and Conclusions: Preliminary older or gradational with eHt, spanning the combined analysis of the data indicated that most impact craters chronological extent of the Noachian and Hesperian in the study area have not been subject to substantial stratigraphic periods [1]. erosion or infilling since emplacement. There are how- ever noteworthy differences among the three geologi- cal units in regards to the modified craters. These dif- ferences can be interpreted in regards to the histories of modification of the craters, and by extension of the units to which they belong. Impact craters on unit lHt have been mostly modified by infilling. The crater statistics for eHt and HNt overlap, suggesting a combi- nation of progressive wasting and infilling processes acted on the craters to modify their dimensions over comparable periods of time in both units. A conservative working hypothesis to explain the statistical similarities of eHt and HNt is that some parts Fig. 1. Geographical and geological context of study of the Mensae and the Planum may have experienced region. The map was assembled using the on-line tools coeval resurfacing. Investigations using smaller data of the geospatial information system Java Mission- sets of impact crater data filtered for quality and loca- planning and Analysis for Remote Sensing (JMARS), tion, together with interpretation of geomorphological from http://jmars.asu.edu. The geological unit layer is characteristics of the craters and the units, are under- from [1], overlain with partial transparency on the sys- way to obtain more precise statistical constraints, with tem default Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) the aim to ultimately help to clarify the relation be- shaded relief data layer. The final figure was prepared tween units HNt and eHt in the study region. using a commercial image editor software. The white References: [1] Tanaka K. L. et al. (2014) Geolog- frame shows the extent of the study area. ic Map of Mars 1:20000000, USGS SIM, 3292. [2] Tanaka K. L. et al. (2014) Geologic Map of Mars, In a preliminary study of the region, I applied sta- pamphlet accompanying USGS SIM, 3292. [3] Tanaka tistical methods to diameter and depth dimensions of K. L. et al. (2014) Planet. Space Sci., 95, 11-24. impact craters to narrow the age-range of unit HNt [4] Caprarelli G. and de Pablo M. A. (2014) AGU Fall relative to units eHt and lHt in Nepenthes. The work Meeting, Abstract #P33E-05. [5] Robbins S. J. and outlined here is a self-contained section of ongoing Hynek B. M. (2012) JGR, 117, E05004. .